Although we may not realize it, Jesus is always closer than we think He is. When we get caught up in the crowds and noise that surrounds us, we can sometimes have a problem seeing the Son of God and experiencing His healing touch. We become like the blind man in today’s account, hearing the commotion around us but not being able to see the reason for all the excitement. But through faithful persistence, Christ will see us first, even if He seems to be nothing more than a distant voice in the crowd.

To the surprise of so many out in the world…this is actually where St. Anthony’s struggles began. As Christians, we will never get attacked harder by Satan and his demons, then when we are trying to live a holy life. The devil ignores people who live in filth and darkness…because he knows he has them. He focuses his attention on people trying to live a Holy Life…and St. Anthony was no exception to these attacks.

There is an image that I often see make its rounds around theophany, of fish trying to swim upstream in the River Jordan. These fish instinctively spend their entire life swimming North, towards the fresh water source of the Jordan, because they know that if they get swept up in the current, they will be deposited into the Dead Sea, which is so full of salt that nothing can survive.

“In Truth, all the elements bore witness that their Creator has come…The Heavens knew that He was God, because they immediately sent forth a Star. The Sea knew Him, because it allowed Him to walk upon it. The Earth knew Him, because it trembled when He died. The stones and walls of houses knew Him, because they were broken at the time of His death. The lower world recognized Him, because it gave up the dead it was holding…

And yet, the hearts of His people remained full of unbelief, and did not know that He was God…even though all of the dumb elements perceived Him as Lord.”

What has Christ revealed to each of us this past year: Is our faith strengthened or was it weakened? Can we consider ourselves to be the young Saul of Tarsus, persecuting the Christian faith or the “new man,” St. Paul the Apostle, willing to suffer for the Gospel of Christ? Are we willing to die for our faith like St. Stephen?